by Expo Events Consulting Expo Events Consulting

The site of Expo 2020 Dubai will be transformed into a new district – Expo City Dubai – that will provide a model for innovative urban districts geared towards collaboration, knowledge-sharing and talent creation for the benefit of future generations.

This was announced by H.E. Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General of Expo 2020 Dubai, during her final report to the General Assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) on 20 June.

 

The first World Expo in the Middle East recorded 24.1 million visits, welcomed 16,000 world leaders and dignitaries, and was host to more than 35,000 events, with the Expo’s concluding message being that “connection and collaboration are sacrosanct in the service of peace, prosperity and the preservation of this planet we call home.”

In her report to BIE Member States, the UAE Minister emphasised her appreciation to Emirati leadership, to the people of the UAE, to international participants, to the 30,000 volunteers and to “every strata of society from political and business leaders to academic and grassroots activities” who contributed to the achievements of Expo 2020 Dubai.

Recalling the collective journey towards the Expo themed “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future”, Ms Al Hashimy emphasised the value of “true international cooperation” as at Expo 2020 Dubai “every nation was granted the opportunity to contribute its singular voice to a truly global conversation; one nation, one pavilion; a launch pad for action”.

Turning to the legacy of the Expo, Ms Al Hashimy declared “While Expo 2020 Dubai may have closed its doors. Expo City Dubai never will”. The new district – which will have a phased reopening from October 2022 – will be a “24-hour neighbourhood illuminated by unique arts and world-class architecture, and inhabited by responsible and engaged citizens from every walk of life.”

Major features of Expo 2020 Dubai will remain part of Expo City Dubai, including Al Wasl Plaza, the three thematic pavilions, the Expo waterfall, and a number of international pavilions including those of Saudi Arabia, India, Egypt and Morocco.

Expo City Dubai will build upon the environmental responsibility that was key to the construction phase of the Expo, Ms Al Hashimy told BIE Delegates, noting that it will leverage its infrastructural advantage to “generate local and global economic value as a clean and green tech hub”. It will also tap into the foundations of Virtual Expo and utilise ground-breaking technological advancements to establish its own unique space amid expanding digital horizons.

Telling BIE Member States that the new district is “possessed of a one-of-a-kind culture, an irrepressible spirit through which the legacy of Expo 2020 Dubai will live on”, Ms Al Hashimy concluded by inviting BIE Member States and all actors to join the transition to “a new way of life”.

The Expo 2020 Dubai delegation at the General Assembly was led by the Chairman of the Expo 2020 Dubai Higher Committee H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, and also included the Ambassador of the UAE to France, H.E. Hind Al Otaiba.